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Tuesday, September 02, 2014

Welcome back, Helen. God
has really been moving in your writing life. What do you see on the horizon?

I have two more series, one contemporary and one historical,
currently under consideration with my editor. I’m looking forward to ACFW
Conference and talking to some industry professionals before deciding whether
to proceed with the series of books I have written in another genre.

Tell us a little
about your family.

My husband and I recently celebrated our 50th wedding
anniversary. Ken has been preaching for 54 years. We have three grown children.
Our daughter is a college science instructor and lab coordinator. Our oldest
son is a mailman, and our youngest son is a police officer.

James and I will
celebrate our 50th in November. Has your writing changed your
reading habits? If so, how?

I don’t do as much pleasure reading on a regular basis,
because writing claims so much of my attention. I usually indulge in a reading
binge between writing projects. Of course, research reading is ongoing.

What are you working
on right now?

I’m revising the second book in the prairie series I have
under consideration. I’m also working on
another series set in the Great Depression. And I have another contemporary
series outlined.

What outside interests
do you have?

I am a pianist and vocalist and play the trumpet. I am also
an amateur ventriloquist.

How do you choose
your settings for each book?

I tend to stick with settings I know well within my home
state. (All but one historical series is set in Missouri.) They are usually areas where my
husband has pastored.

If you could spend an
evening with one historical person, who would it be and why?

The person I would most like to spend an evening with is
still alive, but he’s elderly and feeble. Billy Graham has my utmost respect
for the way he has preached the gospel all these years and maintained his
integrity.

What is the one thing
you wish you had known before you started writing novels?

I can’t narrow it down to just one. It’s more like the one
thing I’m glad I did NOT know. If I had known how long it would take to achieve
publication, I might have given up long ago.

What new lessons is
the Lord teaching you right now?

I guess I would have to say to be more flexible. I have a
tendency to have tunnel vision. Whatever project I’m working on is my total
focus. Publication has forced me to put aside the current work-in-progress when
other things have to be done—AFS’s, edits, blog posts, etc.

Please tell us in the
comments what an AFS is. What are the three best things you can tell other
authors to do to be successful?

Study the craft and publisher guidelines.

Be persistent and write regularly.

Attend writers’ conferences if you can.

Tell us about the
featured book.

Ozark Wedding is the third and final book of my Ozark series.
It is set in 1939 and is the story of the younger sister of the heroine from
book two, Ozark Reunion. The story is
set against the coming of electricity to the rural areas of Missouri.

Please give us the
first page of the book.

Missouri, 1939

Irene Delaney wrote an arithmetic problem on the blackboard
and turned to face the three students seated on the bench at the front of the
one room school. “Martha, can you …”

Bang. Pop. Bang.

A hand flew to her chest, sending the chalk sailing to the
rough pine floor. It shattered.

Children shrieked and ducked down in their desks, hands over
their ears.

Another explosion rattled the door of the pot-bellied stove
that occupied the center of the west wall. Eyes peered over desks at it.

Irene fought to control the short gasps of her rapid breath.
Moments later the hammering of her heart slowed as her brain figured out that
one of the students had put some kind of ammunition in the stove. And there
could be little, if any, doubt as to which student had done it.

The students seemed to reach the same conclusion just as
Irene did. All eyes turned toward Wesley Bozeman.

“Miss Delaney,” said eight-year-old Pansy Murdock.

“Yes, Pansy.”

“I saw Wesley put something in the stove.”

This was the last straw. Fear that had quickly turned to exasperation
now became anger. Irene turned to face the lanky thirteen-year-old boy. He wore
an expression of studied innocence, but it changed to defiance as her accusing
stare bored into him.

“Little Miss Tattletale,” he mocked, aiming a glare at
Pansy. “Always making up tales.”

“She may be a tattletale,” another student piped up, “but
she tattles the truth.”

Irene drew a deep, steadying breath. “Wesley, you may stay
after school to discuss this.”

Lord, please give me
patience. Help me guard my tongue.

Too angry to deal with the perpetual troublemaker in front
of the students, she strove for calmness and continued the lesson. “Okay,
Martha, can you show us how to do this problem?” She indicated the blackboard.

“Yes, Ma’am.” The twelve-year-old went to the board and
began to write.

Wesley shot out of his seat, nearly knocking the desk over,
and made for the side of the room lined with coats hanging from hooks. He
snagged his and went out the door, slamming it hard behind him.

Irene did a quick assessment. Going after Wesley would mean
leaving the other students unsupervised, and she doubted she could catch him
anyhow. He would go home, and that was fine with her. She directed her
attention back to her students.

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This book is about the coming of electricity to the rural areas. While writing it, we had an ice storm here in Missouri, and the top of an ice laden tree fell on our power lines. It pulled a big hold in the house and took out our electricity, cable, and phone. It was February and bitter cold. We were without power for eight days.

I wrote chapter 8 and half of chapter 9 by the light of an oil lamp, with the fireplace our only heat.

I would love to win Helen's book! I read her first and second and am anxious to read this one! I "met" her on a favorite blog of hers/mine and have followed her publication success...YAY.Thanks for the giveaway!Jackie Smith in GA